U.S. patent number 5,493,781 [Application Number 08/141,193] was granted by the patent office on 1996-02-27 for cutter.
This patent grant is currently assigned to Kai R&D Center Co., Ltd.. Invention is credited to Tatsuya Saito.
United States Patent |
5,493,781 |
Saito |
February 27, 1996 |
Cutter
Abstract
A cutter includes a movable blade, a handle and a slider. The
movement of the slider causes the blade to move between an extended
cutting position and a retracted storage position. The slider
includes one projection which is pressed against a surface of the
blade so as to frictionally engage the blade for preventing its
free rotation or movement during the cutting operation.
Inventors: |
Saito; Tatsuya (Seki,
JP) |
Assignee: |
Kai R&D Center Co., Ltd.
(Gifu, JP)
|
Family
ID: |
26583103 |
Appl.
No.: |
08/141,193 |
Filed: |
October 21, 1993 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
Issue Date |
|
|
922064 |
Jul 29, 1992 |
|
|
|
|
Foreign Application Priority Data
|
|
|
|
|
Apr 17, 1992 [JP] |
|
|
4-98187 |
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
30/162;
30/164.95; 30/292; 30/314; 30/319; 30/335 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B26B
25/005 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
B26B
25/00 (20060101); B26B 025/00 (); B26B
029/02 () |
Field of
Search: |
;30/162,292,307,319,320,335,314,315,317,340 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
0027492 |
|
Sep 1983 |
|
EP |
|
2440849 |
|
Apr 1975 |
|
DE |
|
Primary Examiner: Rada; Rinaldi I.
Assistant Examiner: Dexter; Clark F.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Limbach & Limbach Bengtsson; W.
Patrick
Parent Case Text
This is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No.
07/922,064 filed on Jul. 29, 1992,now abandoned which is
incorporated herein by reference.
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A cutter comprising:
a handle including an elongated groove;
a blade having a first surface and a second surface, said first
surface facing said handle, said blade being movable between a
cutting position and a storage position;
slider means, connected to said blade and slidably supported by
said handle and along said elongated groove, for selectively moving
said blade between said cutting and storage positions and for
holding said blade in said cutting and said storage positions;
said slider means including resisting means for frictionally
resisting a free movement of said blade during a cutting operation,
a base portion that is generally positioned in proximity of said
first surface of said blade, and a positioning portion which
extends from said base portion for securely positioning the blade
in one of said positions;
said handle including pressing means for pressing said resisting
means against said first surface of said blade when said blade is
in said cutting position;
said resisting means including a resilient member which projects
from the base portion toward said first surface of the blade and
positioned such that said resilient member is forced toward said
first surface of the blade when said blade is moved from said
storage position to said cutting position;
wherein said blade has a generally disc shape and is rotatably
mounted on said slider means, and wherein said handle includes a
platform extended from an end of said handle and supporting the
blade for rotation thereon.
2. A cutter according to claim 1, wherein said pressing means
includes a plurality of tapered surfaces.
3. A moveable blade cutter comprising:
a handle;
a blade having a first surface and a second surface, the first
surface facing the handle, said blade being movable between a
cutting position and a storage position;
said handle including an elongated groove;
slider means being slidably movable within said elongated groove
and connected to said blade, and slidably supported by said
handle,
for switching the blade position between the cutting position and
the storage position;
said slider means including resisting means for frictionally
resisting a free movement of the blade during a cutting
operation;
said handle including pressing means for pressing the resisting
means against said first surface of the blade in the cutting
position; and
a platform extending from an end of the handle,
wherein the blade is rotatably mounted on said slider means and is
supported by said platform for rotation thereon.
4. A cutter according to claim 3, wherein said slider means
includes a base portion that is generally positioned in proximity
of the first surface of said blade, and a positioning portion which
extends from the base portion for securely positioning the blade in
one of said positions.
5. A cutter according to claim 4, wherein said elongated groove
includes a plurality of setting recesses, and wherein said
positioning portion includes a plurality of projections which
engage said setting recesses for causing said blade to be securely
retained in one of said positions.
6. A movable blade cutter comprising:
a handle;
a blade having a first surface and a second surface, the first
surface facing the handle, said blade being movable between a
cutting position and a storage position;
slider means, connected to said blade and slidably supported by
said handle, for switching said blade between said cutting position
and said storage position;
said slider means including a base portion being generally
positioned in proximity of said first surface of said blade, and a
positioning portion extending from said base portion for securely
positioning said blade in one of said positions;
said handle including an elongated groove, and said slider means
being slidably movable within said elongated groove;
said elongated groove including a plurality of setting recesses,
and said slider means including a plurality of projections engaging
said setting recesses for causing said blade to be securely
retained in one of said, positions;
said slider means including resisting means for frictionally
resisting a free movement of said blade during a cutting
operation;
said resisting means including a resilient member for abutting said
first surface when said blade is in said cutting position;
said handle including at least one tapered surface positioned
adjacent said blade such that said resilient member contacts said
tapered surface and is forced toward said blade when said blade is
switched from said storage position to said cutting position;
wherein said blade has a generally disc shape and is rotatably
mounted on said slider means, and wherein said handle further
includes a platform extending from an end of said handle and
supporting the blade for rotation thereon.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a cutter. More
particularly, it relates to a cutter haying a blade which is
slidably extendable to a protracted cutting position and a
retracted storage position.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The following conventional cutters are well known and exemplify the
state of the art in the field. A rotary cutter has a disc shaped
blade which rotatably and pivotally moves with respect to a
stationary handle. A conventional cutter knife has a straight
cutting edge. The cutting edge slidably protrudes to permit cutting
and is retracted for storage.
The rotary cutter allows the rotational friction force to be
adjusted, in order to improve the performance of the cutter. The
U.S. Pat. No. 4,301,594 discloses one type of rotary cutter. The
cutter has a slider arranged at one end section of a handle. A disc
shaped blade is secured to the slider by means of a fastening
device, at its center section. Consequently, an appropriate
rotational friction force could be applied to the disc blade so as
to prevent a free, arbitrary rotation of the disc blade during the
cutting operation.
However, when the fastening device is excessively tightened, the
rotational friction force is significantly increased. Consequently,
the disc blade becomes hard to rotate. When the fastening device
becomes loose, the rotational friction force is significantly
decreased so that the disc blade starts to freely rotate. As a
result, the adjustment of the fastening device becomes rather
difficult. If the adjustment is improperly made, the cutting
ability of the cutter decreases.
The Japanese Unexamined Utility Model Publication No. 61-54752
discloses a cutter knife which has a straight cutting edge. The
cutter knife has a pair of grooves within its handle. The grooves
communicate with an outer peripheral end of the elongated handle.
One of distal ends of the handle is opened. When a slider is moved
along the grooves, the blade is caused to slide by the slider so
that the cutting edge of the blade protrudes beyond the distal end
of the handle, through the opening in the distal end of the
handle.
When the blade is extended by the slider and touches the inner wall
of the opening, the sliding ability of the blade significantly
decreases. Therefore, it is necessary to create a relatively small
gap between the inner wall of the opening and the blade.
Consequently, the blade that cannot be securely held in position
creates a swaying motion during the cutting operation. As a result,
the cutting ability of the blade decreases.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore a object of the present invention to provide a
cutter with a rotatable and slidable blade and a slider, for stable
handling.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a cutter
having a rotatable and slidable blade, such that the blade is
securely supported during the cutting operation in order to
increase the cutting ability of the cutter.
To achieve the foregoing and other objects there is provided a
cutter which includes a handle and a disc blade. The blade can be
protracted or retracted. A slider is connected to the blade and
slidably supports the handle, and permits the blade to move between
a cutting position and a storage position. A pressure applying
device includes a cantilevered elastic projection formed on the
slider to abut against the blade. The cantilevered projection abuts
against the blade when the blade is in use.
In one aspect of the present invention, a disc blade is rotatably
attached to the distal end of the handle. The distal end has a disc
shape, generally proportioned to the disc blade. When the disc
blade is extended to the forward cutting position, the cantilevered
projection abuts against the inner surface of the disc blade and
applies a rotational friction force to the disc blade.
In another aspect of the present invention, a blade which has a
straight cutting edge that can be extended into a cutting position
beyond the distal end of the handle. The cutting edge is
retractable within the handle, for storage, when the cutter is not
in use. The blade is pushed against the inner peripheral edge of
the opening by means of the cantilevered projection, in order to
avert the undesirable sway of the blade.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a plan view of a rotary disc blade cutter, showing the
blade retracted according to a first embodiment of the present
invention;
FIG. 2 is a near plan view of the cutter of FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 is an enlarged partially broken plan view of the rotary disc
blade of FIG. 1, illustrating a slider in engagement with a
handle;
FIG. 4a is a cross-sectional view of the cutter taken along line
IV--IV in FIG. 1;
FIG. 4b is an enlarged fragmentary view of FIG. 4a;
FIG. 5 is a side view of the cutter showing the blade in a
protracted position;
FIG. 6 is a partially broken plan view of the cutter of FIG. 5;
FIG. 7a is a cross-sectional view of the cutter taken along line
VII--VII in FIG. 5;
FIG. 7b is an enlarged fragmentary view of FIG. 7a;
FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view showing a modification of the
first embodiment;
FIG. 9 is a side view of a cutter having a straight cutting edge
shown protracted according to a second embodiment of the present
invention; and
FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional side view taken along line X--X in
FIG. 9.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
A preferred first embodiment of a rotary cutter according to the
present invention, will now be described with reference to FIGS. 1
through 10.
As illustrated in FIG. 1, the cutter includes a generally elongated
handle which is made of synthetic resin. An elongated groove 2
guides a slider 3 along the front surface of the handle 1. An
aperture B is formed in the handle 1, for hooking the cutter when
it is not in use. When the slider 3 is manually slid, the slider 3
is guided by the inner peripheral edge of the groove 2 along length
of the handle 1.
The distal end of the handle 1 includes an enlarged platform 4
which supports a disc blade 8. The platform 4 has a rear generally
flat surface. One surface of the platform 4 is designated as an
upper surface 4b, and engages the disc blade. As shown in FIG. 3,
the upper surface 4b has a slot 5 and a bore 6. The slot 5 and the
bore 6 are adjacent to each other, and are located along the
sliding direction of the sliders 3. The bore 6 is positioned closer
to the peripheral edge of the platform 4. A relatively inclined
tongue 7 is formed at the distal end of the slot 5. The distal end
of the tongue 7 is more inclined than its proximal end, and is
closer to the upper surface 4b.
The disc blade 8 is rotatably supported on the upper surface 4b,
and has an orbicular peripheral cutting edge 8a. When the cutter is
not in use, the disc blade 8 is retracted so that the cutting edge
8a is securely held within an arc shaped peripheral edge 4c of the
platform 4. As shown in FIGS. 5 through 7, when the cutter is in
use, a portion of the cutting edge 8a is caused to protrude beyond
the peripheral edge 4c by the slider 3.
The slider 3 is made of a synthetic resin. As shown in FIG. 4a, the
slider 3 is integrally formed with a generally thin rectangularly
shaped base 9, and a generally short finger grip 10. The base 9 is
disposed on the rear surface of the platform 4 with the slider 3
placed in the groove 2. The finger grip 10 is easily accessible by
the user. When the finger grip 10 is pressed, it is bent toward the
rear surface direction. When the pressure is released, the elastic
finger grip 10 returns to its original position.
A nut 11 engages the base 9, and is securely fastened to the
central section of the disc blade 8, through the bore 6 of the
platform 4. A spring washer 12 is mounted on the upper surface of
the disc blade 8. A threaded bolt 13 is inserted in the spring
washer 12, and the disc blade 8 is coupled to the nut 11.
Therefore, the disc blade 8 is securely fastened against the upper
surface 4b by the spring washer 12. The disc blade 8 may rotate
steadily around the axis of the nut 11.
A cantilevered elastic projection 14 extends from the base 9 of the
slider 3, and projects outwardly toward the distal end of the disc
blade 8. It is inserted into the slot 5 of the platform 4, and is
disposed within the inner side of the disc blade 8. A tip 14a is
used to apply pressure to the blade 8, is formed at the distal end
of the cantilevered projection 14, and engages the tongue 7.
As shown in FIG. 3, the finger grip 10 includes a pair of
projections 15 for positioning the blade 8. A pair of recesses 16
and 17 engage the projections 15 for locking the blade into
position.
As shown in FIGS. 1 through 4, when the cutter is not in use, the
projections 15 of the finger grip 10 are inserted in the first
recess 16, so that the orbicular peripheral cutting edge 8a of the
disc blade 8 is retracted and is securely held within the arc
shaped peripheral edge 4c of the platform 4. As shown in FIG. 4b,
the tip 14a of the slider 3 is then disengaged from the tongue 7.
Therefore, the tip 14a does not contact the disc blade 8.
When the cutter is in use, the finger grip 10 of the slider 3 is
pushed forward so as to disengage the projections 15 from the first
recess 16. As shown in FIGS. 5 through 7, when the finger grip 10
is slid toward the platform 4 and the finger grip 10 is released,
the finger grip 10 returns to its original shape. Consequently, the
projections 15 engage the second recess 17. The nut 11 and the
threaded bolt 13 together with the base 9 of the slider 3 are moved
toward the platform 4 along the bore 6, so that the orbicular
peripheral cutting edge 8a of the disc blade 8 protrudes beyond the
peripheral edge 4c.
As illustrated in FIG. 7b, when. cantilevered projection 14 of the
slider 3 moves toward the distal end of the platform 4, the tip 14a
contacts the tongue 7. Therefore, the tip 14a contacts the disc
blade 8. The tip 14a applies frictional pressure to the disc blade
8 in the direction indicated by the arrow A, as shown in FIG. 7b.
As a result, the frictional force applied to the disc blade 8 is
significantly increased when the disc blade 8 rotates.
When the cutter is in use, the finger grip 10 of the slider 3 is
moved toward the distal end of the platform 4, as previously
described. Therefore, the orbicular peripheral cutting edge 8a of
the disc blade 8 protrudes beyond the peripheral edge 4c. The blade
8 is pressed against the material to be cut, and pressure is
applied to the handle 1 for causing the blade 8 to cut through the
material. The cutting edge 8a of the disc blade 8 is kept protruded
beyond the peripheral edge 4c of the platform 4, when the disc
blade 8 is pressed on the material.
According to the first embodiment of the present invention, the
cantilevered elastic projection 14 is arranged on the slider 3.
When the cutter is in use, the cantilevered elastic projection 14
presses against the disc blade 8. Therefore, the appropriate
rotational friction force can be applied to the disc blade 8 by
means of the slider 3, without the use of a new part.
FIG. 8 illustrates a modification having two tapered surfaces 7a,
7b. This enables the cutting edge 8a of the blade to selectively
protrude beyond the platform 4 to two cutting positions.
Accordingly, the protruding amount of the cutting edge 8a from the
platform 4 may be adjusted in accordance with the thickness and/or
nature of the material.
A second embodiment of the cutter according to the present
invention will now be described with reference to FIGS. 9 and 10,
with specific focus on the differences between the two
embodiments.
A blade 28 has a straight cutting edge 28a. An opening 18 is
arranged at the distal end of a handle 21. The opening 18
communicates with a groove 22. The blade 28 is inserted into the
handle 21 through the opening 18. A projection 19 is arranged on a
base 29 of a slider 23. The base section of the blade 28 is
inserted into the projection 19. Therefore, the slider 23 and the
blade 28 can be integrally moved.
The operation of the cutter will now be described. The slider 23 is
moved toward the distal end by means of a finger grip 30, so that
the blade 28, which is retracted into the groove 22 of the handle
21, is caused to protrude beyond the opening 18. The distance
traveled by the slider 23 controls the length of the blade 28
protruding beyond the handle 21, or retracted therein.
When the cutter is in use, a tip 34a of a cantilevered elastic
projection 34 of the slider 23 is pressed by a tongue 27. The
tongue 27 is pressed against the blade 28 at an inner surface of
the opening 18 of the handle 21. As a result, the blade 28 is
pressed against the inner surface of the opening 18, so that the
sway of the blade 28 is significantly reduced.
The present invention can be used in conjunction with a plurality
of blades with various shapes, other than those described in the
present specification.
Although only two embodiments of the present invention have been
described, it should become apparent to those skilled in the art
that the present invention may be embodied in many other specific
forms without departing form the scope of the invention.
* * * * *